Storm-curtain



2 sheetssmet 1.

(No Model.)

G. MAUST. STORM GURTAIN.

Patented om.. 8, 1895 /N VE N 70H; WM

A TTOHNE YS.

ANDREW B.GRAHAM. PHOTO-L|H0- WASHINGTUN. D C

2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

'A (No Model.)

G. MAUST. STORM CURTAIN.

No. 547,733. a1-,enga oct. 8,-1895...

ATTORNEYS.

W m w /K W n am@ W/ TNE SSE S .NI-TED STATES' PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE MAUsT, -oE PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA,

STORM-CU RTAIN.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 547,733, dated October 8, 1895.

Application led November 15, 1894;. Serial No. 528,942. (No modeLl i v.To all whom it may concern.-

Beit known that I, GEORGE MAUST, of Philadelphia, in the county of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania, have invented'a new and Improved Folding Storm -.Curtain, of which the following isa full, clear, and exact description.

My invention relates to a folding storm-curtain adapted for use upon street or tram cars for the protection of the Inotorman or gripman, the conductor, and thoseof the passengers having seats near the doors from snow, sleet, rain, and cold winds.

The object of the invention is to provide a curtain of theabove description capable of being expeditiously and conveniently brought into position to Y eectually protect parties upon the platform of a car or like vehicle, and a curtain which is, furthermore, so constructed that when not required it may be folded up and stored entirely out of the way.

The invention 'consists in the novel construction and combinationfof the several parts, as will be hereinafter fully set forth, and pointed out in the claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar figures and letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the views. v

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a platform of a car having the curtain applied thereto,

the curtain being shown as closed around the platform. Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the platform and curtain, a portion of the latter being broken away. Fig. 3 is a front elevation of the platform of a car, showing the curtain as folded up and stored away. Fig. 4. is a side elevation of one of the brackets employed. Fig. 5 is a horizontal section through a portion of the bracket and the support therefor. Fig. 6 is a vertical section through a portion of the curtain, illustrating the manner in which sashes are mounted to slide therein; and Fig. 7 is a detail perspective view of one of .the fastening devices for the curtain. In carrying out the invention a rail islocated beneath the hood of the car and lthat portion of the roof which extends over the platform, and the said rail is in the shape of a frame, embodying aback section 10, afront section ll, and end sections 12. A standard 13 is projected upward from each end portion of the dashboard 14, or, as shown in the drawings, the standards 13 may extend from the floor or platform upward to a connection with the frame 12 at its upper end corners or with the hood-section of the roof. The standards 13 are adapted as a support each for a bracket 15, and these brackets are preferably constructed as shown in Figs. 4 and 5, in which it will be observed that the rear or inner portion of the upper member is formed with a clamp 16, the said upper member being provided with a recess 17 in one side to receive a plate 18,'th`e plate being concaved at a predetermined point between its ends, and the concaved face of the plate is made to meet a concavity 19 in the bracket proper. The plate-section 18 of the bracket is adjustably held in engagement with the body of the bracket through the medium of set-screws 2O or like fastening devices.

The standard 13 to which the bracket is to be secured passes upward between the concaved surfaces thereof, and Vwhen the setscrews are loosened the bracket may be moved upon the standard to any desired point and be held rigidly in adjusted position by tightening the set-screws'20. The position of the brackets when in use is that shown in Fig. 2, in which their lower ends are made to rest substantially on the top rail of the dashboard. The lower inner portion of each bracket is concaved, in order that it may slide readily upon the face ofthe standard, since the said standards are usually made round in crosssection, and at the upper outer edge of each bracket a transverse recess 21 is produced. The brackets are adapted to support a stretcher-bar 22, the said bar being made to enter the recesses 21 in the brackets, and this stretcherbar is made substantially to conform to the contour of the dashboard, and since the brackets extend outward some distance beyond the dashboard the stretcher-bar will not in the slightest interfere with the use of the brakehandle or the handle controlling the motor or grip levers. Three curtains are preferably IOO lside curtains B. The front curtain is buttoned or otherwise attached to the inner face of the front bar 1l of the hood-frame, and this front curtain is carried downward over the stretcher 22, whereby the curtain is prevented from interfering with the brake-handle, and the lower edge of the curtain is usually carried inward below the top rail of the platform and attached to the said rail or to an equivalent support through the medium of clamps C. (Shown in detail in Fig. 7.) 'Ihese clamps consist of plates 23, which are riveted or otherwise secured to the edge of the curtain, and from the plate a spring 24 is projected, carrying a hook 25, and this hook, when the spring is placed under tension, is passed over the support with which it is to engage and will therefore hold the curtain under proper tension.

In order that the driver, conductor, or other person or persons on the platform may readily see out in a forwardly or rearwardly direction, according to whether the curtain is on the rear or the front platform, the front curtain A is provided with a frame 26, in which any desired Ifumber of independent grooves or slideways 27 are formed, as shown in Fig. 6, the grooves being of equal number at the top and bottom of the frame; and in each of the said grooves one or more sashes 28 are made to slide, each sash being provided with a transparent pane 29. These windowsashes may be moved very readily without intcrfering with each other, and when the curtain is torbe stored away all the sashes may be carried to one end or to the center of the curtain. Since it is sometimes desirable that but one-half of the platform should be inclosed, the window-frame 26 is made in sections and connected by a hinge 30, and the stretcher-bar 22 is likewise made in sections,

which are connected by a hinge 22, as shownin Fig. 2. Under this construction one half of the front curtain may be folded over upon the other half. The side curtains B are buttoned or otherwise secured to the side walls of the end of the car-body, and are likewise buttoned to the inner-face of an end bar of the upper frame attached to the hood. The said curtains extend from the roof 0f the car down, preferably, tothe step or to the door of the platform, and the outer side edges of the end curtains are provided with the clamps C, (shown in Fig. 7,) and these clamps are made to engage with the standards 13. The end portions of the front curtain A may be and preferably are buttoned or otherwise attached tothe inner faces of the side curtains, and the side curtains are preferably provided with windows 32, and said windows may be either double, as illustrated in Fig. 1, or may be single, as shown in Fig. 3. It will thus be observed that under this construction the platform of a car may be quickly and effectually housed in and the occupants of the car, together with the driver or conductor, will be protected from the weather. One side curtain may be fastened in place at both of its edges, while the opposite curtain may be attached at one side, so as to enable passengers to make a ready exit or gain an entrance to the car. When the curtains are not required, the front one may be folded up or stored in any approved manner within the frame below the hood or tied directly to the said hood, and the side curtains may likewise be folded up in the same manner as the front curtain; but the side curtains being quite short may be carried inward, as shown at the left in Fig. 3, and buttoned upon the rear or inner rail of the upper or hood frame. The brackets 15 are carried upward out of the way, and likewise the stretcher-bar 22 The frames and sash are made of any kind of hard wood or metal and the sash-grooves may be double or triple and made V, U, or squarein cross-section.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire-to secure by Letters Patent- 1. In a storm inclosure for car platforms, a curtain adapted for attachment at the roof of a car, a stretcher extending from side to side of the platform above the dash and in advance thereof, the curtain being carried over the stretcher, and means, substantially as shown and described, for securing the lower end of the curtain, as and for the purpose set forth.

2. In a storm inclosure for car platforms, standards extending from the dash upward to the roof, brackets adj ustably located upon the said standards and extending outward beyond the dash, a stretcher carried by the brackets, and a curtain connected with the roof portion of the car and extending downward over the stretcher, the lower edge of the curtain being secured at the dash, as and for the purpose set forth.

3. In a storm inclosure for car platforms, the combination, with the dash and the roof of the car, supports extending from the dash upward to the roof, and brackets adjustable upon the said supports and adapted to extend outward beyond the dash, of a curtain having windows therein, the said curtain being constructed in hinged sections whereby one part may be folded over upon the other, a stretcher carried by the brackets, likewise constructed in hinged sections, over which the curtain is passed, and means, substantially as described, for securing the lower edge of the curtain, as and for the purpose specified.

4. In a storm inclosure for car platforms, the combination, with the dash, the roof of the car and standards extending from the dash to the roof, of brackets adj ustably located on the standards, a stretcher carried by the brackets,\a front curtain attached to an overhead support and capable of folding upon itself,

IOC

IIO

the said curtain'extending downward over front and side curtains, as and for the purthe stretcher, whereby it is held away from pose specified.

thebrake-operating mechanism side curtains i likewise attached to the roof ,and body of GEORGE MAUST 5 the car, and devices, substantially as de- Witnesses:

scribed, for connecting the said curtains with CHARLES RIEGER,

the standards and likewise for connecting the ROBERT J. MAUST? 

